Process of aging liquor



A. B. cAYwooD 1,996,266 PROCESS OF AGING LIQUOR Feb; 5,. was.

Filed Oct. 13, 1933 V v g wbw 2%-Z%u7- iaywood.

Patented Feb. 5, 1935 v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 7 PROCESS OF AGINGLIQUOR Arthur B cam, Denver, 0010. Application October 13, 1933, SerialNo. 693,464

' '1 Claim- (Cl. 202-78) This invention relates to improvements inmethods for aging spirits such as commercial a1- cohol.

It is well known that raw spirits of alcohol contain harmful ingredientssuch as acetic acid,

' refuses to release liquor from bonded warehouses unless it has beenstored for at least five years, which therefore makes a delay betweenthe production and the consumption which can only be given whereproduction has for a time been well ahead of consumption so as to storeup a surplus.

It is the object of this invention to produce a method of aging whichwill accomplish substantially the same results as the older methods in acomparatively short space of time and which method therefore lendsitself particularly to the manufacture of alcoholic liquors at this timewhen there is not a suflicient surplus available to permit the old agingand rectifying processes to be employed.

The method that forms the subject of this invention, briefly described,consists in enclosing the liquor in a cask whose irmer surface has beencharred by fire in the usual manner. Steam pipes are provided within thecask and properly connected with a supply of steam so that thetemperature of the liquor can be raised to any extent desired andincreased at any rate desired. The liquor is usually first raised to atemperature of 110 degrees Fahrenheit, after which it is graduallyincreased along a straight line gradient until at the end of ten hoursthe temperature has attained 150 degrees Fahrenheit, which temperatureis slightly below the boiling point of ethyl alcohol. Simultaneouslywith the heating, air is introduced under pressure and this is mixedwith the liquor by means of impellers or agitators which serve to keepthe liquor in continuous movement and to thoroughly mix the air bubblestherewith so as to produce an oxidizing effect which assists verygreatly in the removal objectionable constituents.

After the liquor has been heated for ten hours, as indicated, whilebeing aerated and agitated, it

Q can be removed to other casks, whose sides have been charred and isthen kept at a temperature of between and degrees Fahrenheit for aperiod of thirty days, whereuponthe liquor can be removed and bottledand will then be foun in prime condition for consumption.

In carrying out the process an apparatus is employed which has beenshown on the drawing in elevation with parts in vertical section. In thesingle view on the accompanying drawing, and which consists of a barrelpreferably made from white oak, and which has been indicated byreference numeral 1, the ends of the barrel are closed by means ofclosures 2 and 3, the entire inner surface of the barrel or cask beingcharred as aboveindicated. The barrel rests on cradles 4 and-locatedwithin the barrel is a coil 5 of cop- 1 per tubing which has one endconnected with the steam pipe 6 and the other end connectedwith thesewer pipe '7'. A valve 8 serves to.control the rate at which steam ispermitted to enter the pipe 5 and to condense therein and by properlyregulating the exit by means of valve 8 the temperature can be made toremain constant over any period of time or can be gradually increasedalong a predetermined gradient as may be-desired. A shaft 9 is mountedfor rotation in suitable bearings 1y arranged in such a manner that whenthe shaft is rotated at the proper speed, the propellers will set upcurrents which circulate outwardly on a diagonal as indicatedby thearrows 12 in the drawing. Some of the liquor returns along the pathindicated by arrow 13 and another portion returns along the pathindicated by arrow 14. It is now apparent that when the agitators areoperating there will be a continuous circulation of the liquor withinthe barrel. In order to introduce air into the liquor during the agingprocess two or more pipes 15 are located within the barrel and areconnected with the inlet pipe 16, that is provided near. its end with avalve 18 which serves to control the flow of air into the liquor. Amotor 19 is provided which has been shown as connected with the shaft 9by means of a belt 20. It is, of course, apparent that any suitable wayof transmitting power from the motor to the shaft can be employed. Inorder to-remove the liberated vapor; the bung 21 has been provided withan opening for the reception of a pipe 22. This pipe extends to acondenser 23. and preferably terminates in a coil 24." Tbe'con- 10 atthe ends of the barrel and this shaft carries propellers 11 that arereversedensate fills the condenser and se y es as a cooling nidium forthe vapors as they enter the coil. The fixed gases and condensate areremoved from the condenser by means of a pump 25, and the latter canthen be subjected to fractional distillations for the purpose ofseparating the' diiferent parts which separation is usually notattempted during the rectification of the liquor. A thermometer 26 isusually provided so that the attendant can determine at any time thetemperature of the liquor within the barrel. Instead of an ordinarythermometer, it is, of course, possible to employ a recordingthermometer so that a permanent record can be had of the temperatureconditions that prevailed during the aging process. The apparatus shownin the drawing is filled with liquor to withina short distance of thetop, after which the steam is allowed to flow and heat the liquor untilit reaches a temperature of 110 degrees F. During the heating theagitators are usually kept in operation so as to assure a uniformtemperature throughout all parts of the barrel and to uniformly aeratethe contents. After the temperature has reached 110 degrew,"

the rate of flow of steam is increased so that slightly more heat isliberated than that lost by radiation and evaporation and thetemperature gradient is so adjusted that a temperature of 150 degrees F.will be reached at the end of ten hours. As acetic acid has a boilingpoint of substantially 118 degrees Fahrenheit, this constituent willbegin to distill over as soon as this temperature is reached. Fusel oilhas a boiling point of about 120 degrees Fahrenheit, and this will bethe next to distill over, andin this way the harmful constitu:

. ents are removed by fractional distillation. By increasing thetemperature gradually from W 110 F. to 150 F. a fractional distillationis effected which is more effective for the purpose than if the contentswere quickly raised to the highest temperature required and keptconstant for by such a procedure the many volatiles would be evaporatedsimultaneously whereas with the method employed by me the harmfulingredients are eliminated in the order of their-volatility whichproduces the best resul During the period of fractional distillation airis introduced through openings in pipe 15, and this will be thoroughlymixed with the liquor by the action of the impellers. The oxygencontained in the air will serve to oxidize any organic materials andwill also serve to combine with the vapors so as to increase the volumeof the latter and the undissolved air will pass off with the vapors intothe condenser from which it will be ultimately removed as fixed gasesthrough a pipe After the liquor has been subjected to fractionaldistillation at a gradually rising temperature for a period of tenhours, it can then be removed from the rectifying barrel and placed inother barrels having charred inner surfaces, after which it ismaintained in. a heated room and at a temperature varying from todegrees Fahrenheit for a period of about thirty days. At the end of thisperiod, the liquor will be found to be in suitable condition forconsumption and experience has shown that liquors rectified and aged inthe manner disclosed above are substantially equal to those that havebeen aging for a number of years, and this method is thereforeespecially' well adapted. for use where sufficient time is not availablefor the ordinary aging meth-.

ods, and besides by using a method like the one described, the cost ofthe process is greatly decreased and it is also unnecessary to carry aslarge a stock as otherwise because on account of the shorter period oftreatment, a smaller surplus will be suflicient to take care of themarket needs.

Having described the invention what is claimed as new is:

The method of rectifyingand aging distilled a1- coh'olic spirits whichconsists in confining the liquor in a container in contact withcharcoal, agitating the same in the presence of air and simultaneouslyincreasing its temperature from degrees Fahrenheit to a point slightlybelow the boiling point of alcohol, the temperature increase takingplace over a period of about ten hours'whereby the constituents having alower boilingpoint than alcohol will be distilled off in the order oftheir volatility, then maintaining the liquid ata temperature between 95and 100 degrees Fahrenheit for a period of about thirty days, andremoving the vapors released during the heating period.

ARTHUR B. CAYWOOD.

